A fairly straightforward statistical extrapolation says a lot about just where the Benedictine College men’s basketball team is at halfway through Heart of America Athletic Conference play.
In six conference victories, the Ravens average 15.5 three-point attempts per game. In four HAAC losses–William Jewell, Evangel, Missouri Valley and most recently a 97-93 overtime defeat at MidAmerica Nazarene–BC’s attempted 21 treys a contest.
The message: don’t settle.
In the particular, Benedictine succeeds on offense when it’s patient with the ball and waits for the right shot.
“The games that we’ve won, we’ve been consistent,” assistant coach John Peer said, “and it seems like we don’t settle for that outside jump shot. In the games that we’re winning, we’re not shooting as many threes so maybe [in games we lose] we’re settling for shots when we shouldn’t be.”
While working towards the best opportunities to score has proved beneficial on offense, the idea of staying hungry lends itself to keeping the Ravens focused as a team. At 13-6, Benedictine has already surpassed its win total from last year.
But a tight-knit group of athletes that team captain Jack Johnson praised for its depth and resiliency has a chance to do a lot more than just improve in the regular season win-loss column.
“Everyone knows what their strengths and weaknesses are on the team, you know, what they need to do, and I think a lot of people are trying to play within their role,” Johnson said. “I think that’s what’s been successful so far. The right people are taking the right shots. When we show up, we’re pret
ty tough to beat.”
While playing near the top of such a wide open conference (six teams had a record of .500 or better when the Circuit went to press) is admirable, Peer said the last thing Benedictine can afford is satisfaction.
“I don’t want to say we got complacent or happy, but no one’s raining on your parade when you’re playing like we are this time of year,” he said. “We’ve still got more than half our conference season left and we’re going through a stretch right now where it’s all on the road. I think it’s important for our guys that we don’t look big picture.”
Results from BC’s home tilt Thursday were unavailable as of press time. The Ravens head to Canton, Mo. for a 4 p.m. contest against Culver-Stockton Saturday.
